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As you can see above the original plan was cancelled due to the forecasts, but Dave and I were still keen to try and make the most of it. Especially as I had invited Will and Gordon . Ten years after we had a fantastic fishing holiday together, on Ascension Island. We met up for a curry on Thursday evening, trying to limit the fishing chat, because Wendy and Aide joined us. Fridays new plan. On the boat at 7am and off out to look to find some bait fish. Then out to try a few wrecks With the company of our friends on Reel Magic. First time this year, part A achieved. 30 of these in the coolbox Lets push on out 20 miles and hope for some clear water. Great to have the team back together again Catching up. The first wreck was barren in a fairly choppy sea and stiff breeze, so on we go. Its been a long time since I had Gordon onboard so a few reminders were needed on techniques. he must have been listening as he kicked our butts. Breaking his PB 3 times. First at 9lb 8 We all had a few fish, but it was more them than me as I kept snagging up This one 14lb and finally a beast of 17lb Dave even added a small cod to his species list, a very rare fish indeed over recent years. Well done mate. After we had plenty on Ice, and a very nice chicken curry. we headed off to a deep spot and dropped anchor. There were a few tope about but at slack we had quite a few Huss Nothing huge, but at least we were getting some fish. All too soon it was time for home. Wendy was away and Will was staying. so we decided that cooking up some fresh mackerel would make a fine dinner, washed down with something cold. Saturday day 2 would start the same way , except Dan was able to join us, 0700 at the boat, some hellos and off we go. Stopping briefly to pick up some more bait. As sometimes happens on day 2, the wrecks were slower. Although Gordon did have a small cod, with some pollack. Dan managed to Christen a new rod with a fish of 11lb 8oz Once again we enjoyed a great lunch then set off to anchor a really deep gulley. Dropping fresh baits into that was very exciting, the Tope were on them within minutes, there were plenty of decent ones and they were hungry. Dan had the biggest, but it escaped as I attempted to lift it onboard so no photo sadly After the tide started screaming we headed off for some banks on the way in and got the lure rods back out. We struggled for a few drifts, but Dave's crew were getting lots of bass. A tweak of tactics had us joining in. Final score Reel Magic 20, Alfresco 6 You cannot win them all. In late after a calm steam back to Poole. Mackerel had been so good last night, we took more home to enjoy again with Wendy Sunday Day 3 A much smaller tide, but still an 0700 start Bait was hard to catch, but we had plenty onboard so headed off to the Shambles Passing the ledge there were lots of birds , but we decided to stick to plan A fish on the second short drift seemed to feel good But it was a tough day We only managed 5 and only took one home No sign off feeding birds on the route home either. It had been a much slower day. But still enjoyable seeing Chris and Kev on the banks and having Dave in company once again. We had made the very most of a few days with poor forecast, enjoying some great sport on two of the days. Lots of miles covered, excellent company of good friends. Even the sun shone. Ended on Sunday night by going out for dinner again in Wimborne. Home for a few drinks and an early night. Great fun

Having seen lots of reports of some decent Pollock being caught, yesterdays weather window and tide to good to miss. 7.30 bridge and a lovely calm sea and a good run just over two hours at 23knots bought us to our first wreck. Two shooting friends and Dogfish Dave on board, the two friends were new to wrecking so i had tied up lots of rigs!!!! First drift an 8lbs Pollock for Baz, his first ever Pollock so over the moon and a good Red Gurnard to Dave and a fat Pout for Piggy. The sun came out and it was glorious, nearly 200ft with a maximium 3 knot drift all the ducks were in a row! A reasonably steady flow of fish throughout the day with some smaller ones managing to be put back. I christened a new SPJ outfit with first a PB 15lbs Pollock, then a 19lbs Pollock then an 18lbs fish!!!! All the fish gods were smiling on me that day for sure. With 3 Pollock each i decided we should head for home for the 4.30 bridge, after 10 minutes we hit a VERY thick fog bank, about 50m viz, radar on 3 other very experienced Yachtmaster crew on board helped one watching the radar, and two on watch was good for confidence, encountered one small boat off Durleston on the radar then one total ejit in the Swash doing 20knots with no radar echo on a rib!!!! Luckily we made the bridge with time to spare, none of us had seen fog in the forecast. Really red letter day for me and a great all round craic.

The plan day two was to go sharking but unfortunately J2 couldn’t make it so another plan came together and Stuie was collected to make the 9.30 lift. Traffic was much better than i expected so we had plenty of time to tackle up and a cuppa before leaving Cobbs, arriving at the bridge we were told there was an RTA and the 9.30 was not going to happen. Thankfully we only had a 15minute delay. I still needed a Thornback for the species hunt so that was the plan. After Stuie had had five congers and me two with other bits and pieces in 30 minutes we moved!! This proved a good idea, however no Thornbacks, Stuie was on fire and we managed 9 Small Eyed and a nice Undulate of 12lbs, I had the dogfish side of the boat but still had a few Small Eyed and a Conger or two. We fished for under four hours and caught a lot of fish but unfortunately not the target required. Returning at the 14.30 bridge, a great day out with Stuie, lots of banter and a happy tired angler was dropped back at Cobbs at 15.00. Oh if only the weather played ball a bit more!!!!!

My 1st Bluefin !!

Sun no wind flat seas and fish what more could we ask for? Arranged a trip out on Madness and press ganged Tony D and Graham N to crew with me. The weather men actually got there predictions spot on for a change and we we headed out on flat seas with sunny glimpses cruising all the way at about 20knots. After a little issue with Navionics playing up on the iPhone sending us past the mark we eventually anchored a bank in 90' of water. Turns out not to be Navionics fault but my new iPhone couldn't see the satellites so wasn't updating correctly (lesson Learned) Virtually zero tide running for a few hours but average sized Bream were caught from the off. Our club chair joined us on Y-Knot just as the tide was about to turn. We were not positioned quite right for the changing tide so re-anchored just as the tide began to run and bagged ourselves a better spot. Here we had a solitary Mackerel on the lazy line, several rays a nice Tope and more Bream The fresh Mackerel definitely upped our catch rate Thanks Tony and Graham for being such good sports and great company

Oh how I love being pretty much retired. Us semi or full on retirees can please ourselves (almost) what we do and when we do it. So happens that the weather man said Friday is going to be a good day, after pontificating for a moment or to and along with Mrs B's wise words of why don't you just man up and get out there a plan started to appear. Messaging back and forth with Mal (must learn to make phone calls as much easier) it was decided to go out on the 7:30 bridge and concentrate on inshore stuff. The first port of call was a bank just off of Ballard about a mile off where we were hoping to get a ray or two. The plan fell by the wayside as we were inundated with small to average 1lb Bream which was nice but frustrating that nothing else had a chance or look in. The moment baits hit the deck then rattle Bream were on the rag and squid baits. We decided to move approx 3 miles offshore to look for bigger stuff. The mark I suggested used to hold a larger stamp of Bream and so it did with fish up 1.75lb so not quite what we were looking for. The tide got up and the anchor tripped which caused a few moments one of which was one of my Kenzakit 6-12lb rode getting stuck in and crack the top 75mm broke off Shite. We took this opportunity to move again as Mal was becoming desperate for a Ray. Anyways we re-anchored to the 50/50ish banks with fish from the off. first drop and almost instantly was a Bas, I must have planted the bait on its head as I never even put the rod in the holder it was straight on. Only small maybe 1.5lb at best but a good start. Not as busy as the inshore mark but we had several rays of which only one was landed a blonde of probably 8/9lb but nice to see. I was into a good fish which was stripping line from my 20lb class Kenzaki and ABU 7000 synchro reel but unfortunately after a couple of mins it bit through the trace line (oh pooh) and so it continued. Al in all the weather was as good as the forecast if not better, the sun was out, the sky was blue and the fish were playing. Such a crack being out with Mal, I loved it, here's to the next time IMG_0022[1].MOV IMG_0026[1].MOV

My adult son and myself took the 2 youngest grandchildren out yesterday into the harbour. For one of them it was his first ever time fishing. I suggested one adult and one child form a team against the other adult and child. THEY decided it would be kids v adults! Unfortunately THEY started well! With both catching fairly decent fish within minutes (of the skipper putting them on the fish 😉 ) Within 15 minutes it was 3 . 0! With one bass measuring 47cm! By the end of the trip (2 1/2 hours) it was 12 . 2 and id had enough of being wupped by a couple if 7 year old!

These trips are a real bonus and help warrant having a boat in a short season harbour like Christchurch, this is only the second or third I have managed this year 😔. Knowing the wind was likely to rise later I decided it would be a following sea for the trip in. So with thoughts of fresh mackerel and frozen offerings I set out in calm seas and choose to anchor off the end of the ledge, I managed a couple of full strings of Mackerel but very little else, so a move was in order for the flood. Anchored on the Western side this time with some confidence it was a decent area. After the fresh scent trail was established, I had a conger of 20lb, followed by a few smaller ones. For some reason I was still upbeat something else would turn up and It did. A plump 6lb Bass who gave a good scrap, It was returned. Then a rare Thorney turned up which was welcome, shortly followed by a Bull Huss of a similar weight. Another 2 full strings of mackerel, then the wind was building and thoughts of a wash down and good tidy up was entering my mind, whilst the body and mind were weakening. Strong tide and large waves on the way in had me dodging loads of semi submerged net or pot buoys. As often happens once in the wind dropped off and a clean up followed. A good decision to go out, my spirits and thoughts of the boat and the costs with very little use has been weighing on my mind, also with the threat of a large increase in mooring fees in Ribs pond. The engine went well and sounded much better than recent past trips following the new injectors being fitted.

Well the weather scuppered another try for most of us. Dave and Adam took the decision mid week, that the wind and wave forecasts were a bit too high and unsettled. Steve's boat rides the waves better so he decided to go. What to do?? Go fishing of course. Sat was the best day so Dave organised a good crew to meet up at 7. Dave Chris Kev and I were all keen to get out and set off early to see what the sea state was like. " Its fine" says captain Dave so we settle in for 20 miles to the first shipwreck. Thankfully the weather was not as hot as the past few days. Then we started a pattern of several drifts, a few nice fish, then move on. With a target of drifting a big wreck at slack with bait. We shared several pollack to 14.5 lb. 4 bass and even a small cod for Kevin to take home to Bath. All to soon it was 5pm and time to head home. It had been a great day, with three good mates. What a crack, lots of fun banter and some fishes to clean and share Thanks Dave, Chris and Kev I really enjoyed the whole day.

I was asked to crew Kodiak back from the Hamble to her home at NHYC Poole, forecast looked 'ok', wind and swell behind us. I chucked in a old rod with fixed spool to try for an early mackerel off the Shingles.......Adam didn't bother. Well, whilst I feathered, Adam cleaned the cabin. I moved us off back towards Poole and the Xchurch Ledge, and no sooner had I said "keep an eye out for birds....." Than Adam spotted some...... We headed over, it was like a tuna bust-up. I would say we ended up with 1000+ gulls and a line of them that stretched 1/2 mile or more. Started off on feathers....a decent bass followed them to the boat... Found a reasonably heavy lure and got close, couple of hits on first cast, then fish hooked on second. That is how we spent the next 60 minutes.....we caught loads, many just under size, but managed a few sizeable ones for the coolbox. Yes, I let him borrow my boat rod to cast with! And I even caught a couple on a lure tied to a spool of line by hand. Not bad for a non-fishing trip! Lovely cruise back, on to mooring and a glass of wine in the sun by the clubhouse. One of this year's upgrades was sonar with a thru-hull , which needed an extension to a step in the hull ..... It worked beautifully! There was always noise on the display at speed, where we believe air was below the shallow hull. R

Chris and I went out 7.00am Sunday on a very low Spring, no problems with air draft. The boat needed defrosting and so did we, the Flood was fast and furious and mainly after we had passed through the swash, on the return in that was a different matter very little wind but 2mtr waves standing up. We tucked round the corner in Swanage hoping the fish had done the same, they had but they were all LSD variety. As the speed of tide eased we moved out on some banks along with a couple of Charters, still very slow we even had to wait for a doggie to bite. By the time it sped up we decided to give Swanage ago on the Ebb when the tide has less swirling, just LSD. So another move saw us drifting for a flattie, no bites at all. We crossed the Swash and got caught up in the 2mtr waves and that was enough, the final whistle, we had had enough, hopefully a cold Guinness was available, even that was not definite due to a bar refurb. thankfully they were open. Water temp measured at 10 degrees, I wonder if things will switch on when it reaches the magical 12 degrees. We still had a great day out in the sunshine around our beautiful coastline, a few fish other than doggies would have brightened up the day. A fuel up, a wash down and a Guinness saw the end to another 13 hour day. No rocking required when we got home.

Boats out tomorrow so a nice weather window was to good to miss, J2, Norfolk Nick and Chris was feeling up to a trip which was great to see him back out, the plan was Spurdogs, well that didn't work!!! First drop J2 had a nice Blonde then a LSD, then everything went pretty quiet for probably a couple of hours. We had grumpy commercials fishing round us catching a LOT of Bass and good ones to. Even though the Bass ban was on we decided to have a couple of drifts, well after 2-3 drifts catching a couple a drift all around the 5lbs mark and putting them back i persuaded Chris to have my rod for a drift. " Get a 10lbs err please Chris, never had a double on this boat" Next drift you got it Chris, had a stunning 10lbs 11oz fish on the deck!!!!!!!!!. Few more drifts and getting more depressed seeing the commercials catching huge numbers of really good fish all 5-10lbs all about to spawn, we decided on a move. Back to the 50/50s where we had a really great couple of hours catching Whiting to 3lbs, Congers to 20lbs, and an early Smoothound. It got really hectic for a while with great banter and even some mickey taking!!!!!! Quick run home filleted the Whiting through the 3.30 bridge, oh yes first catch of the day, and season, was a tern for J2 on a surface lure as daylight broke!. Great first trip with lots of craic.

A trip out on Wednesday with my mate Rob Rennie having not caught up with him for 2-3 years proved pretty slow to say the least. Rob catches huge numbers of sharks in the Celtic Deeps and i wanted him to approve my set up and rigs etc as the few times we have dabbled with little success. I know some chaps who fish our area sharking a lot, with great success with Threshers and Porgies, but the numbers just are not in our waters so more time and effort needed. Well i was glad everything i was doing was right, except again no sharks around yesterday!!! 0-3mph wind forecast, however it was a horrible lumpy chop 18 miles off with a lazy swell mixed in somehow. We drifted 6 wrecks which we felt all had nets on as we left over a dozen shads on to our annoyance with not even a Pout to show for our troubles. Slack water approaching and not a fish on the deck i decided to anchor a wreck in 140ft, well first attempt spot on, except the anchor dragged straight into the wreck after 10mins!!! Not happy i played the dart board game and luckily after 15mins we got everything back and the anchor hadn't even tripped. I decided some banks close to the wrecks a better option. Rods out and a really good chum trail nothing was happening except the usual congers to 25lbs and only 2 Pout!. The tide swung round and after a bit of knitting with shark rods we settled for a couple of hours on the flood. Not the best anchoring while sharking but at least we had a chance to bottom fish whilst a toothy bait was out. Getting close to pulling stumps Dogfish had a nice Huss just over 10lbs followed by second next drop 14lbs a pb for him so at least we had achieved something. Real last knockings i had a bite which proved to be a 6lbs Bass. Homeward bound we had a nice but choppy dry day, put the world right about 100 times, bacon butties, crab sandwiches, about 50 cups of tea, very few fish. I think i will wait for the Whiting to come before my next trip out, unless the weathers right!!!!!

My mate Gaz with a 17lb blonde today, 01 Nov.

Big fish on, very local

With the weather we have had the last few days I-managed to squeeze in two trips. First day was chasing Bass with a huge tide and J2 and a friend celebrating his 71st birthday, 7.30 bridge and we all felt a few live bait would help our plan, no birds no mackerel or Scad so we managed enough Pouting, though not easy. Off to our chosen bank and fish from the start, smallest probably 3.5lbs most around and over 5lbs and best going 9lbs. We had two triple hook ups and and lots of doubles which caused chaos with the landing net. J2 stuck with Shads which produced the biggest fish of the day, Martin the birthday boy used live baits and dead baits, I did initially but went to SPJ as the tide eased and even had one drift with a whole squid on a circle which again produced a fish. We only had 2 blank drifts all day! Saw Kingfisher who had also had a red letter day, if only we managed a few more wind free days

Duncan and I had a red letter day today based on the year so far, 16 rays or one or two more. Nothing bigger than 12lb but plenty of them on two different marks. Our Trawler got close at one point and made us move away further out and it turned out to be a good move. Really tired tonight so this post will developed with some pictures and more stories of the day.

Picture says it all

As the species hunt hots up I thought it was time to get off shore for a few rays and a tope. Went out to our mark south of St Alban's. Despite the promising weather forecast, the sea was horrible. Moved to an Inshore mark and caught all day, but no monsters. Plenty of Bream to 1.5 lbs, congers, dogs, wrasse, small rays ( not the ones I wanted). Some large ballans and other mini species and one three beared rockling to Ray Ashby. We took special feathers for mackerel but didn't use them. Had a nice Cuttle that left its mark behind.the

Yesterday my 18 year old Grand Daughter passed her driving theory test which I'd been helping her with. Today at about 3am ish my 23 year old Grand Daughter gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. So . . . . . Yesterday I was a good Grand Pappy. Today I'm a Great Grand Pappy. 👍 Can you imagine just how proud I'm feeling today ? 😄 🥰 👍 😊

Today’s target was squid & cuttlefish - despite trying for ages I had nothing, even though they’ve been showing from the piers. So, plan B was a go for the rays which had been conspicuous by their absence; here I fared better with 6 or 7 nice small eyed to mackerel strip. Lovely & flat out there today, I might go for more of the same tomorrow

Yes , I use WhatsApp . Over fifty names on it now, mostly non members from my other life. All folks who have said, “I might like to come with you one day”. At the push of a button I can invite them all and when they don’t come I can reward them with reports and pictures, sometimes almost live from the action . And so earlier in the week when wives, work and other worries put paid to to any of my contacts dropping the “other life” stuff at hideously short notice ,I once again had no crew for the weather opportunity which was Friday. The good skipper of Looby IV sportingly offered to take me on for the day and plans were made. We went with plan “c”; early trip down 7.30 bridge. Every fishing trip is an adventure . I’ll always associate the Dorset countryside with a sense of excited anticipation and the scene as the dawn broke over Cranbourne Chase seemed to articulate my mood. That’s why I was one minute late Jerry! But not too late for the Bridge The rest of the plan was simple; put the world to rights in the total absence of any political correctness whilst trying to assail the species comp leader board by scoring a bull Huss and/or a thornback dustbin lid. I’ve disguised our secret chosen location by cleverly photo shopping popular local tourist destinations into the background of my trophy shots.😉 suffice to say, with only two of us aboard we didn’t go further than we needed to. We anchored two hours before slack . The tidal run still had spirit for a while. We fished three well weighted ledgers an up tider and two lazy lines. It was fish from the off! (I will one day use that line to head up an Endeavour3 report!) Gurt (Wiltshire term) dustbin lids with spots on. To Jerry l He was pulling another up as the ferry went by. Jerry explained that the reason his lazy line had been out fished by mine was that a tope had eaten all his! Eventually he nearly got to interview it about its crimes as he got it up on light gear but it jumped bail and absconded. The mark produced six species,Rays(Blond or Spotted. I always get them the wrong ray round.) bream , four or five pouting , a couple of mackerel, a couple of troublesome small eels. That’s not six is it.? But there was something else. The wind got up so we went to Swanage and Jerry showed me how to read the ground there. Productivity was down; fish wise I mean. We weren’t short of inappropriate banter. I got far too excited over a two pound conger again and another bream came up The wind got up more. We opted to run round to shelter in the lee of old Harry. It was a popular call and the charter skipper who ran up and anchored just stern of our starboard became the focus of J’s endearments. I tied to calm him as the stag party aboard reached its crescendo. “Just young men having a good time. Like we were once” We stuck it there for a fruitless hour. But you can always pick up tips Like this ; the bucket in the foreground is full of fresh water . All used rigs and lines and ledgers go in there to get rinsed. The bucket in the background is allegedly full of hoodlums😕. Our last hoorah was an east west drift across the Swash and quietly beyond. I was was privileged to witness the first time Jerrys ever done that without Catching a single thing. Seems I did teach him how to do something after all! Four thirty bridge End of play great day. All spic and span again Thanks Looby IV Thanks Jerry Final thought ReWhatsApp. I did a WhatsApp report of little content beyond photos in very few minutes when I got in last night.. very easy and very immediate. This club report took longer, much longer . I struggle with the file handling etc . It’s not such an easy medium. If I had committed these experiences to a club WhatsApp exchange this report would not have been written in this style . You judge. I feel Terry Plaicemat has written the wise words on this. MG

Do you remember the first time you rode a bike.Thought daddy was still holding on but he’d let go ages ago. You were on your own ! Scared witless but buzzing with excitement! Do you remember when a year or two later you shot past shouting “look daddy ! No hands” Of course you remember it . It was the year you spent summer holidays with your arm In plaster.🥴 Thats about where I’ve got to with this boating milarky. Today I saw a perfect day but was completely unable to raise a crew from the north. Well many of you think nothing of a solo trip but I would prefer company. But the summer is passing us by 🗓️📆so damn it , I went for a solo trip out of Tucton. I’d heard mackerel were in big time. I’d have a few of those and then use the double high slack water to play shads (or mackerel)for bass. So the fishing went badly as neither trick worked and being overconfident I had no bait. But the boating and navigation was great . Launch and parking on a rising tide was easy except for the wading which flooded my wellies. I elected to get off mid afternoon before the tide dropped. The tricky bit was securing the boat on the falling tide and leaving it to find your trailer double parked. Once I’d overcome that Endeavour3 was rocking like a see saw on her cathedral hull. I managed to bounce her back into the river but there may be a few strands of our fibreglass left on the slip. The stour was running a bit by then but I managed to get the rocket science worked out powered it straight up the carpet bunks from a curved approach . Orbeit it was my fourth try. Got straps etc on . Ringwood to Salisbury was closed and ended up coming home via blandford . But home by seven anyway. Im glad I did that . But id sooner have the company of friends. If your up for a trip on Endeavour3 please apply below. Sorry , no fishy pics😢 .

A long standing retired member Nigel Allen excepted an invite out on Kingfisher whilst on holiday from work. We set out from Cobbs on Sunday for a mixed fishing day. Mal got their a little early as most of you will know and set up Kingfisher for the trip, kettle on and raring to go. The day started looking for the elusive Mackerel, which I think ended up as 2 individually caught by NA and one joey later by MT. Many hours with 2 rods and lazy lines over the side, how ridiculous. As you can imagine that started the I remember when stories, you only had to go outside Swanage and drop some feathers and you had bait for the day. Those days are long gone along with other species. With big tides we managed our time in deeper waters, after a few bream and one small undulate we made our move out towards some banks for a drift. Bass first drop and then 3 on a line of feathers with a slow jig, only two made it into the net. Good size for eating so we took some for the plate and returned the rest for another day. The banter was wicked as always, nothing was missed and everything got a cheeky comment followed by a chuckle which often ends in a coughing session with us old gits. Just enough fish to keep us entertained, later in the afternoon the white tops made a show beam on and bumpy, as always Kingfisher just keeps pushing on through it and is so reassuring. By the afternoon a beer was calling before we needed a knap before bedtime. Great day with old buddies, such a joy to have Niggle the "Cod father" back out fishing.

Family over from South Africa and nephews desperate to fish, the weather window slotted in a treat. Wind direction was well out from some apps, but trusty XC unfortunately correct, first spot produced nothing, so a move found the fish with a dozen+ Bream to just over 2lbs, lsd, Whiting and whips kept them busy for a couple of hours. "don't be disappointed if you miss a few bites lads as they can be finnicky!!!!!" They hit the baits as if they had never eaten before!! So great success and hook ups, i explained about the males, females, eggs breeding etc so one fish each taken for tea. Incredibly small tides killed off the chance of a Plaice at the end of the day however the sun came out and we headed in after a really fun day.

First trip out over the sand bar, well I got over it ok. It would have been better to travel a bit further beyond the last yellow marker on Starboard side. say 80-100mtrs past and then head straight at the Needles. The Harbour is very shallow at the moment, I only had 2.4ft in places, we need some cruisers drawing 1 mtr to stir it up. This was a shakedown trip out at Sea and the Auto Pilot is not playing ball, "go to Sea they said and it will reset after a couple of turns" oh no it didn't. You sure miss auto pilot when it is not working. I gave the Rays a good go and managed 1 spotted, to catch that I had to wade through 30 plus doggies, they are really wide spread out there, on every bait as soon as it hits bottom. Managed a few whiting that I could see on the sounder, then back in over the bar. I had to jump out of the cabin whilst on the way in by the first yellow and stop an idiot steering directly over the sand bar, just saved him by 50 yards otherwise he would still be there. Auto pilot a bit disappointing means more effort to get it sorted. Then the marina wanted me to go on another berth while they work on mine, what a pain setting up all new ropes on a fixed pontoon. Big wash down and home absolutely shattered.

Red letter Pollock day on Loobie 1V

Fish of the Year 2024 Date Caught Name Boat Species Weight lb Weight oz Spec lb Spec oz % Specimen 04/08/2024 Dave Evans Reel Magic Shark - Thresher 200 0 140 0 142.86 27/09/2024 Colin Francis Boblin4 Mullet - Thick Lipped 5 8 4 0 137.5 14/07/2024 Adam Franklin Kodiak Gurnard - Red 1 9 1 4 125 06/03/2024 Dave Evans Reel Magic Bull Huss 14 2 12 0 117.71 27/09/2024 Colin Francis Boblin4 Mullet - Thin Lipped 4 1 3 8 116.07 06/03/2024 Charlie Chapman Reel magic Spurdog 18 0 16 0 112.5 19/05/2024 Kev Couzens Reel Magic Brill 5 1 4 8 112.5 07/06/2024 Colin Francis Boblin3 Mullet - Thick Lipped 4 6 4 0 109.38 20/05/2024 Gary Witheford Kingfisher Weever 0 13 0 12 108.33 06/12/2024 Charlie Chapman Alfresco Ray - Small Eyed 11 9 11 0 105.11 Dave Evans with the Fish of the Year, sorry Dave can't resist, wearing a "nappy" as most of us would trying to land one that size!! I meant harness Dave. 😁 Well done Dave, and well deserved. 👋 Great to see all ten fish over 100% specimen, well done to all who recorded fish. 👏

A belated report as it has taken me this long to recover, on Sunday after a Saturday visit to an adult panto, we ventured out on Kingfisher Martin, Mal and Chris. Certainly one of us rusty from lack of use, similar to a reel handle of mine. We had plans to go far off, however the weather and sea state put pay to that. We stopped short on 6mile banks as did a few others. With great expectations, a breakfast roll inside us from the cafe on the quay and wearing most of a cup of coffee, the first lines were over, we waited and waited. Then a rod bender, it fought like a cod, it couldn't be could it, no of course not it was a Conger. Followed by a few more and a few Whiting in between, a couple over 2 pounds. We had a grumpy commercial doing a ridiculously close drive by to his buoys for a net he had laid, later he must have taken some happy pills as he was waving like a close friend, funny bunch the commercials. We did not see much in his very long net. The weather was windier than forecast all day with one small lull, there was a few rogue waves amongst them that made me over balance at least once. We did try hard to find something other than above, with a few drop backs on anchor and a couple of moves, just not a lot out there it would seem. A good wash down and a visit to the bar for a quick Guinness and home, a fourteen hour day and a couple of Whiting for the table. Great day out, memories made with some great friends what more do you want out of life.😊

Ben and I met at the boat at 0730 setting off out as the Sun sneaked through under the clouds, it was cold but not as bad as recent weather. The sea state was lovely We picked a spot and anchored up for the last of the flooding tide. Whiting were plentiful but a little smaller than recent trips. and bigger baits were attracting a lot of congers. Ben cooked us up some great sausage baps washed down with hot coffee, then we had a short move. At last a better fish was hooked up and giving a good account of itself in the now quite strong ebb tide. 20250112_130447.mp4 Ben who had been knackered all day struggled a bit with this one. But it was worth it for a very nice 16lb 8 Blonde. As the tide eased a few dogfish and a lot more whiting and congers joined the fun. 1530 I took pity on Ben who was suffering from no sleep on Saturday night, we pulled the anchor to run in and clean down in daylight. Not a bad trip for early in the year, we only took 8 keepers.

Bloody show offs 😁 Merry Christmas from me

…were the target today on Christchurch Ledge &, for once, the plan came together!

So what happened on our three day fishing trip bonanza? First of all let’s start wit a spot the birdie competition; my version of where’s Wally There’s loads of prep; light boards ever let me down. Thanks god these work. IMG_9563.mov Gordon valiantly tried to splice an expedition with me onto the end of an overseas break but got delayed ( to fight another day hopefully)…. So proceeded to Ridge Warf near Wareham early on Tuesday. Booked to stop over Tuesday/ Wednesday nights. Intending to cash in on superb weather on Tuesday and Wednesday. Thursday would be weather dependent . Tuesday on the run out. Almost too quiet Caught up with “ farmer Colin (“ who is a Buckinghamshire (?) farmer who travels down even further than me).. just outside the harbour entrance. I always forget something, I loaded milk , bait ,waders ( for the launch), jack , wheel brace,life jackets, tackle box,rods. Spare radio, torch, change of clothes, towel, toothbrush , nav aids, sleeping bag, luxury half inch thick foam mattress (mattress?), spare wheel, jack, jack handle, spare bearings, hammer , punch, grease, four cans of fuel,change of clothes, £100 cash prize for my crew, vacuum flask of tea , charging cables of the new standard, charging cables of the even newer standard,bait,bait board, bait knife, filleting knives, iced chilly bin and other stuff. But what had I forgot? A box full of goodies and provisions.. that’s what was still on the bench outside my back door. I rafted up with Colin’s boat and and he’d forgotten stuff as well but with combined efforts we produced latte coffees And had a social hour drifting in very light conditions by the training bank lure fishing , lazy lining and dragging plaice gear. I watched the mackerel swimming under the boat but they weren’t feeding. Odd bits were being caught to other boats but Colin and I left them to it . We went to ground further out where he caught squid last year. We kept this up most of the afternoon Colin quickly scored one and I persevered and got my first one ever after a couple of hours. It wasn’t very fruitful. We had three in all. It was a my first and therefor PB for me. We left an hour or so to join the plaice drifters along the shore. Colin caught some quality mackerel there. I had managed a tub gurnard earlier. Left Colin to it and plied my lonely way back to Ridge. I slept over on the boat and got up before seven awaiting the arrival of two guests. Hooky was coming over with supplies and a friend from Pewsey managed to get down. We snacked on the squid before getting on our way. Beautiful glassy still day. Too still Searches around the Hook sands found no fish . I decided to try Peverel ledge where the rough ground might stir some fishy action Mutley was taking it all in . A novice to this job. A steady drift across this interesting ground eventually brought us to Black Bream. With beginners luck Mutley had this beauty . The best of the day We caught over a dozen in the end Beginners luck held and Mutley brought this scrap in Not until I got home and checked the identity did I find out that whilst common in Cornwall it’s very rare in our bay. It’s a Comber. Can’t claim it on the species comp as it’s not on the list yet. A few new species are turning up. It’s great have one on our boat. Other catches; pouting, red gurnard and a string of plump mackerel . Hooky took a head for bait and brought in a Cuttlefish . He used a pouting for bait and it came back macerated by something toothy. No hookup though. We wanted to get our guest back in daylight so sped back at five. Speed limit is relaxed in October so we made good time. Everyone was well happy with that. Sent Mutley home with a couple of bottles of cider to go with his fishes and discovered a flat tyre on the trailer… but I had a spare. Slept on the boat again and dreamt up a plan for Thursday. The falling tide snd the bad weather meant that everything had to be done by 11 am. It gave me very little time to fish but if I got up early changed my trailer wheel and went down the river at 7 o’clock. I could fish at Hamworthy for guilt head bream for an hour or so. That’s what I set to doing But there was quite a thick early morning mist. It seemed thicker on the open water. Anxiety appealed to wisdom urging me to go back. Bravado and a desire to prove that I could handle the conditions said go on . I had instruments after all . The fog would soon lift anyway . It wasn’t on the inshore waters forecast. Turn 30 degrees at the next corner watch the depth sounder watch the garmin and take it steady I passed the post and steered 30 before very long at all I was on mud. Thinking I’d oversteered i steered 20. No improvement then I glanced at the garmin I was way off course in the mudflat then I figured out my mistake I’d made my 30 degree tun one post too soon. I felt very lonely then . There isn’t a higher point in the tide for 24 hrs . I wasn’t in any particular danger but being stuck there would belike bing in the stocks. Adrenalin was high., more embarrassment than panic . I lifted the motor and punished it a bit whilst rocking the boat 1.5 ft depth it took ages but it didn’t stop sliding and eventually I found the gully. That was fun wasn’t it. I was glad I had opted to go up the learning curve but that was enough education for one day and I steered for home. Lovely quiet trip back let’s play spot the birdie again u there he is. uplifting encounter on the cruise home! loaded and away. By 11am who wants to come next time?

What a day, after all the wind it was so nice to get out. Christchurch has a remarked channel today, but again the wind looks heavy for another week. it was so nice to be on the radio with so many PBSBAC members listening in on channel 6 and having a brief check of who is doing what. Great club chat and some fish, what more can you ask for. Thanks to Martin for the invite and thanks to everyone out there today contributing, loved it. I managed a Ray yippee.

Headed out yesterday with my mate Gaz in search for whatever was out there. Was advised by the tackle shop not to waste my time looking for mackerel…I didn’t cos there seams to be very few about! Headed out to the banks and set the anchor on a small area. Fish from the off…thornback, bream, conger and my mate Gaz had a lovely trigger fish. Was going to stay out all night but the chop got up in the afternoon and didn’t want to anchor off studland for the night in an on shore wind…looks lovely today though ! Hindsight and all that 😁

Mal's brother Trev with a big trigger

Sadly i didn't get out on the Bream, The weather gods didn't look to be smiling on me, then on Sunday my boy asked if we could go out anyway so only lures on the drift, didn't fancy bobbing about with my boy as he'd soon turn green and given his age i definitely don't want to put him off fishing just yet! He did however manage to bag him self 2 small bass on lures which made his day

Bobi and me had a lazy start and headed out about 0930hrs. We set off for our chosen mark, we passed Dave Reel Magic and Charlie Alfresco on our way. We dropped our anchor but I wasn’t sure I had got it quite right as the wind was blowing us off the channel. This is where the Targa paid off for us as all we had to do was go up to the bow and fish from there. First drop Gilthead to me only a small one , but as we were fishing the comp it was weighed, 7oz. I had two more in quick succession 1lb 2oz and 1lb 13oz. Then a different bite and I was into a fight with a Smoothie, it was a big fish but fishing off the bow has one drawback, yes the anchor chain, it managed to wrap around the chain and snap me off. So far Bobi hasn’t had a bite, then came another Smoothie to me and Bobi`s first bite, sadly it was only a small Bass. We decided to move to the other side of the channel to see if we would sit better and then fish off the back. We were into fish straight away me into Gilts two more both 1lb and Bobi into Bass. Then at last Bobi has a Gilt 1lb 6oz. More Smoothies to me than a Black Bream 1lb 6oz to me too. Time for lunch and true to form, cup of soup in one hand bread roll in the other my rod hoops over, I managed to juggle lunch and rod and another Gilt to me 1lb 13oz. We moved a couple of times but didn’t manage any more fish so we knocked it on the head just before 1500hrs. Results for Boblin. Bobi. 1 Gilthead Bream 1lb 6oz. Colin. 6 Gilthead Bream 1 Black Bream 1x 7oz. 1lb 6oz 2x. 1lb 1x. 1lb 2oz 2x. 1lb 13oz

Planning started on Friday, bait, invites and scheduling. Purchased bait now I must keep it alive, set fridge to 10 degrees, that should do it. A push off at 6.30am was planned due to a Springs and boy did it come in quickly. A Cuckoo decided he was going to make himself known at 6.30 am, it was beautiful listening for 15 minutes at very close quarters. The Plan was a trip across the Bay for some Plaice. Easy trip across the bay, nice a smooth. Then I saw a bank of fog coming over Old Harry, at it's worst 100 yards visibility, time to engage the radar and it worked well and I could understand what was being plotted, bonus. On our first drift we heard amongst fog horns a channel 6 call from John on Kelly's Heroes, he had made a similar plan and had some early success, nice to hear a call out on Channel 6 for PBSBAC on the VHF. We had a few plaice and gave it a few hours till the weed got underway. Then I moved off and noticed my engine note changed and I hoped I was being a DQ. Dropped the Anchor on the secret ray mark, that had actually turned into a Secret Bream mark, no rays. We had a busy time with double shots of Bream. Then lifted the Anchor for a slow trip back, good job we did because the engine started to run on 3 cylinders and vibrating. Not good and would we get home, the power dropped off and we were limping home with a developing problem. Managed to find a sweet spot in the miss firing mode to get us home. A Long wormy wash down and a look to see if we had a loose spark plug lead, nothing spotted, however the engine did seem to run better at the end, so I am hoping it was fuel contamination. The engine has just had a big service, so I am hoping for a good outcome. I will call the engineers Monday for a diagnostic check. Btw my radio issues did not repeat, so SS on Tiger fish you may have an issue, please check your radio. It was a good weather day at Sea and sharing another day on board with my Bro and bestie doing the same drifts. Thanks Chris for all your support today and I hope you found a few more. A day with a bit of everything.

Cheers Colin, first trip out in over 18 months without crutches and a boot. Not bad as I only had the ankle rebuilt end of Nov, all looking good. 🤞👍👍

Happy Christmas to All our members From Jim & Jackie.

Lovely start today(Tuesday). Crossing Christchurch harbour. Hope to fish the needles channel for Bass The plan was to use the obliging tides at Christchurch to put in before nine and retrieve any time after 4.30 and fish the infamous “Bridge” by the needles lighthouse . We would go by way of Hurst castle use the Ebb to drift us along likely looking rocky marks on the island side of the channel this drift , in the light winds it would take us gently down to the Bridge where it can get evil. 🌊🌊🌊🌊 We aimed to arrive 2 hrs before slack water to fish the Bridge proper and possibly up to two hours on the flood. I was optimistic. There was a long rolling swell out of the Harbour but no chop. E 3 planed and cruised all day at 18 to 20 knots so we could get there easily in a half hour. We had time up front to go plaice fishing at Southbourne. An hour of this produced one small plaice. Nets were everywhere. Then we set about executing the plan. And it all went to perfection except for one thing . The Bass didn’t seem to want to play. Slack water was half hr later than the Christchurch harbour table . We waited til 3.00 .We noticed other skippers waiting for the flood whereas We’d fished the Ebb alone.🤔 Anyway We didn’t want to stay there in the fading light And decided that the last hour of daylight would be better spent nearer home so we went back to Southbourne and whilst james was sneaking forward for a sly fag (don’t tell my daughter) his Rod started to go overboard. He just rescued it and after a hard tussle afforded us a photo…… We were running up the channel at 5.00 and out by six. No Bass were hurt in the making of this report.(Apart from one which was pulled out under our noses at Mudeford Quay)🤨

Sorry Colin new Club Record. 4lb 6oz Fought well.

I said to Mal last autumn that I sensed a long lazy Indian Summer was coming . So that didn’t happen but it’s happening now and I abandoned the silage fields for yet another three day dose of Dorset Madness. I towed the boat to a secret location near Wareham where I could safely abandon it to attend the meeting. Great meeting and thanks everyone for making us feel so welcome. The talk was fascinating but I don’t think international fishy fame is part of my destiny. At the meeting Rob helped me form a plan for Wednesdays tidal expectations. Plaice drift on the rise. Visit the patches and get pouting over slack Ebb starts at 2.00pm , drift round old Harry using live bait. what ‘appended waz; plaice drifting but I got distracted by the possibility of a bass from the training bank. What do you know ! I caught one with a rusty metal mackerel but only because he was too young to have good taste. The patches refused to yield bait fish although I persisted tried different spots and stayed too long. on my belated way to old Harry I had a brainwave. Squid ! Colin taught me how to catch squid last week . It only took me two hours . I might get really lucky this time. So I arrived at old Harry with only lures to play with at 3.30. I worked that rusty metal mackerel like fury until the tide turned and rocks might be a concern. These Bass had too much panache about them and dined else how .Sorry Rob, I screwed that plan. A bait robbing baby bream fell to my last chuck plaice rig on the way in Today , after sleeping on the boat again I motored across the bay to the Christchurch ledge. Most others chose plaice fishing off Bournemouth beach. I wanted to try for bream and then whilst it was a big spring tide it had a double high which meant a long period of slack water. Ideal for plaice jigging I thought. The tides did what it said on the tin but the bass didn’t . I had one bite all afternoon and that was off in a flash. The plaice drifters did quite well I believe. Let us know Colin. I needed to beat the falling tide to get the boat out or else have to wait till eight. I stopped a few times as I came back across the bay to try and find a mackerel or two but they are scarce. So it was a blank for me today. But it was two days of solo boating . I beat the tide and got the boat out at baiter slip single handed. That was my win from this trip. Special thanks to Dan Barnes for accommodating E3 and Colin for company, logistical support( worms etc) and tutoring on the solo launch and retrieve.

I was hoping for better conditions, I was down on the boat for 5.15am to be greeted with a heavy Southerly breeze which was enough to put me off a sand bar crossing in the dark, so I went back to bed for a few hours and had another go at 10.0am when the tide had risen back up. It was snotty out there on the ledge and a 10 knot trip to the end of the ledge was enough of that. The thought of the planned crossing over the bay was out of the question in a 4ft swell with the occasional 6 footer on the nose, disappointing. I did take some video, not reviewed it yet. Nearly flat calm on the way in. I was followed out by another boat who didn't seem to no where he wanted to go as he zig zagged across my route. Anchoring in a 4ft swell was interesting and I paid out a lot more rope than usual for the rise and fall of the boat and stayed on station with a secure hold, not a big tide it has to be said but 76ft of water is testing. Bites from the off, bream and doggies kept me busy feeding them off till the congers turned up. Then a very strong run with the reel screaming line, lifted the rod out with the clutch released to allow me to get the rod out of the holder and it was gone. Two hooks and a whole squid returned and untouched, what was that, probably a Tope or was it. More congers, bream and doggies and no rays. The Sea was crystal clear, nothing on the fish finder, no mackerel seen. I heard a few boats from PBSBAC but was so busy I forgot to make time for a message. Early finish to get back for the Ryder Cup, what a final day spoilt by the New Yorkers so called fans, they have no etiquette and foul mouths, they should be ashamed of there behaviour which very nearly changed the result such was the impact from the crowd or so called sporting fans. They soon left in their droves with their tails between their legs as the Cup was retained and then won. The governing bodies needs to get a grip, bringing in Police too late and evicting a good number of the crowd was not enough the damage to the event was done.

Decided at the last minute Friday afternoon to go for a day's fishing on Saturday as the wind and sea state looked favourable. But what I didn't realise was that the temperature was gong to be so cold. I headed for the Patch via the 07.30 bridges out of Cobbs with Bream and other species in mind. The tide was coming towards slack water so the fishing was quite slow mainly small Bream and the odd Ballan. Just before the tide was going to run again I uplifted the anchor and moved a little distance to an old Bream mark. As the tide started to ebb, the larger Bream came on. In fact every drop some nice Bream were coming aboard. All went back alive to fight/breed for another day. As I wanted to up my species I moved to the SRM. No rays but and an LSD and a nice size Smoothound to about 7lb came aboard. I then decided to drift for a Plaice for an hour before going in with no joy but a passing small Bass did oblige. All in all a good day's fishing with 6 species for the day and the a much warmer end of the day too. (Thankfully)

Wendys first fish this year. Nice day in the bay.

Club Competition Winners 2024 Fish of the Month January Charlie Chapman Spurdog 12lb 8oz 78% Specimen February Colin Francis Dogfish 2lb 4oz 75% Specimen March Dave Evans Bull Huss 14lb 2oz 118% Specimen April Steve Scott Black Bream 2lb 5oz 66% Specimen May Kev Couzens Brill 5lb 1oz 113% Specimen June Colin Francis Thick Lipped Mullet 4lb 6oz 109% Specimen July Adam Franklin Red Gurnard 1lb 9oz 125% Specimen August Dave Evans Thresher Shark 200lb 0oz 143% Specimen September Colin Francis Thick Lipped Mullet 5lb 8oz 138% Specimen October Steve Scott Bass 7lb 13oz 82% Specimen November Alun Jones Ballan Wrasse 4lb 8oz 90% Specimen December Charlie Chapman Small Eye Ray 11lb 9oz 105% Specimen Trophy Winners Specimen Fish of the Year Dave Evans Thresher Shark 200lb 143% Specimen Bob Horne Memorial No flounders caught on comp. No flounders reported in catch reports. Steve Chester Memorial No Cod recorded. Frank Fudge Memorial Dale Johnson Conger 11lb 4oz Largest Bream Bobi Francis Gilthead Bream 1lb 6oz Largest Flatfish Kev Couzens Brill 5lb 1oz Largest Ray Charlie Chapman Small Eyed Ray 11lb 9oz Simon Hall Memorial Dave Evans / Chris Witheford Bass 9lb 8oz B.A.S.S. Comp – Catch / Release Dave Evans / Chris Witheford Bass 9lb 8oz Junior Shield Blake Witheford Bass 4lb 10oz Specimen Hunters Shield Colin Francis 4 Recorded Fish over 100% Peter Peck – Chairman’s Award TBA at Presentation Ladies Shield TBA at Presentation Competition Winners Spring Species Hunt Cancelled Specimen Comp Not fished. Junior Comp – Not fished Annual Boat Species Hunt 1st Loobie 1V Jerry Shutter 37 species 2nd Boblin3 Colin & Bobbi Francis 36 species 3rd Reel Magic Dave Evans 30 species Annual Individual Species Hunt 1st Colin Francis 30 species 2nd Jerry Shumbler 28 species 3rd Bobi Francis 27 species New Club Records - £25 Vouchers Dave Evans Thresher Shark 200lb 143% Specimen Specimen Hunters – 7 Anglers with 13 Fish 100% Specimen or over Colin Francis 4 Dave Evans 3 Charlie Chapman 2 Adam Franklin 1 Kev Couzens 1 Gary Witheford 1 Chris Witheford 1 Club Trophies to be presented at Club AGM meeting, Tuesday 1st April 2025. Please come along and support the Club AGM and your club members who will be presented with their trophy during the meeting. Venue: The Oakdale Club, 92, Darbys Lane, Oakdale, Poole, BH15 3EU If there is anything anyone can see that is incorrect, please PM me to check. Top of Form Bottom of Form

It has been suggested we should hold a Bream Comp this year, i look forward to seeing lots of entries. Bream Comp 10-11th May All other competitions will be run on fish entered to the fish recorder over the year. Tight lines between now and then, and i hope to get a good turnout weather permitting in May Jerry